Written by Ibrahim Hassan

Belanjawan ’10 yang dibentangkan Menteri Kewangan Tharman Shanmugaratnam bukan seperti yang dijangka ramai orang. Tiada pemberian “bonus” dan tiada “hadiah”. Ia satu perkembangan yang agak mengejutkan. Mungkin ada orang yang menjangka kerana menjelangnya Pilihanraya Umum, mana-mana pemerintah pun akan memberikan sesuatu sebagai pemanis. Namun, Singapura berbeza sekali. Pemerintahnya lebih cenderung menyelamatkan pekerjaan dan ekonomi daripada memfokuskan perhatian pada manfaat politik. Ini amat dipuji.

Written by Ibrahim Hassan

Budget ‘10 unveiled by Finance Minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam wasn’t really what most people were expecting. When you consider the fact that many are expecting this to be an election year, there was some expectation of the government to deliver some goodies – namely a cash handout. Instead of delivering goodies, the government decided to focus on something far more important – helping Singaporeans to help themselves. This budget is all about teaching people to fish rather than giving them the fish. Also observed in the Budget was the fact that the Government seems more interested in salvaging jobs and the economy, rather than concentrating on political opportunity.